Do you like to see pictures of the Characters?

I create an image in my mind of the characters from the descriptions in the books.  But then what they do, say, and act seem to take over the images I create.  But when authors create pictures of the characters based on what they see and write, I LOVE seeing them.

Not so long ago I read Thief by Sarah-Jane Lehoux.  I loved it.  A wonderful fantasy read with many hard choices for the characters.  Review: Thief.  And Sarah-Jane has been posting pictures of her characters lately.  They are amazing!

Would you like to see them?  I do hope you go check them out in Sarah-Jane's gallery.

Which character picture is my favorite?  That is a hard one to pick as I enjoy seeing them all...
  I like Sevy for her amazing eyes.
  I Love Jarro for his beautiful blue eyes.
  I Really Like the picture of Irea Reborn as it is really a neat look at what was an amazing description in the book.  I think this picture captures that moment perfectly.
  Yy'voury and her blue skin and bright dress.  She is just beautiful.

And there are more pictures here I could go on and on about.  But, you are just going to have to go look for yourself. :)  And I hope these pictures spar a little flicker to go read the books. :)

We Have a Winner! For Thief.

Thank you Sarah-Jane Lehoux for being available to do an interview and offering up a signed copy of this wonderful book.

Thank you everyone for stopping by to read the interview with Sarah-Jane Lehoux.  I hope you all get the chance to enjoy this wonderful read as much as I did.  Did you miss reading the interview?  Well, it is always going to be up here on the Blog, but please stop by HERE.

Now, after all the checking, calculating and the help of Random.org we have a winner!

The winner is....

Michelle @ The Book Addict!

Yeah! Thank you Michelle and congratulations to you.  I do hope you enjoy the read as much as I did.

I'm sending an email to you to notify you of your winning, you will have 48 hours to respond with you address so I can send it over to Sarah-Jane to get it out for you.  From 6:30pm 7/1/11 EST.

Giveaway Reminder

Just a reminder the last days to enter for a signed copy of Thief by Sarah-Jane Lehoux are upon us.  The Giveaway Ends June 30, 2011 Midnight!  So jump over to the post and enter.

All are welcome, old followers, new followers, heck you don't even have to be a follower.  It's an interview too, so even if you don't want to enter, please at least say hi. :)

This was one fantasy read with the main Character Sevy, a young female thief with a hard life, has to make one of the hardest choices in her life.  And I LOVED it!  One thing I don't see often in books and enjoyed the story.

Interview & Book Giveaway!

***Giveaway Closed***

But please read on through the interview.

I have the great pleasure of sharing with you an interview with an author of a book that I recently enjoyed.  I loved the ending of this book!  Well, I loved the whole book as I got to know Sevy, her main character.  I enjoyed this book so much I bought the next book the very next day!  If you would like to read my review you can HERE.  Make sure to stick around a the end and enter for the giveaway of a copy of Thief.

With great pleasure please welcome Sarah-Jane Lehoux to the blog!

M:  There are a few levels of magic that appear in this book; elves and dark elves then the different Goddesses. Could we see more of these in the future books?

SJL:  Yes, definitely. Dark elves and their culture play a huge role in SHADES OF WAR. Their matriarchal structure, politics, marriage rites, and ancestor worship are all expanded upon. I also attempted to show that their culture is not static: the dark elves of southern Axlun are very different than those in northern Axlun. It was fun to play them off each other, and it was also fun to play both these groups against the patriarchal structure of human society.


As far as all the different human gods and goddesses, I introduce a couple new ones that have a particular connection to Sevy’s life. In future books, I plan to expand upon this pantheon, as well as introduce different schools of magic. Variety is the spice of life after all.

M:  I think I was drawn to Revik in the book. Oh, I loved Jarro even though I didn’t want to fall for him like Sevy, although I did. But I liked the dynamics in Revik. There was so much more to him than met the eye as a dark elf and the ‘stories’ of the dark elves. Then his whole personality! He was not what I expected and I enjoyed his character. Will we get to see more of Revik on any journeys with Sevy? Or even in the distant future with his long life?

SJL:  Revik was never meant to be such an important character. When I first created him, he was just supposed to be another member of the gang, one who would disappear with the rest of them once Sevy parted ways with them. But he became so very important to the plot, as well as so dear to my heart, that he just sort of stole the show. Which works out quite nicely since he seems to be the favourite of many a reader.


I can definitely promise that Revik will continue to be a huge presence in Sevy’s life. And that’s all I’m gonna say on that for fear of spoiling the end of the series.

M:  You really did take these characters to their brink, then gave them something they wanted. But in the end you did what I don’t see many authors do with their characters, you made them have to pick between the bad and the worst. I love the choices made here. Was this an easy decision for you? Did you know you where going to give your characters the toughest choice of their life to make?

SJL:  I didn’t plan the choice that Sevy eventually has to make. Originally, the loss of her love was supposed to be the catalyst that drove her to the depths of depravity and the original concept was having her struggle her way back up. Having that love suddenly pop back into her life and making her choose between him and her best friend…that was something that came to me after I had already finished the first two thirds of the book.


It meant a good deal of scrambling rewrites, but it was worth it. That part of the process is what I love about writing. Sometimes you take unexpected turns, and sometimes patterns and themes form that you aren’t even aware of until the book is finished.


I do enjoy torturing my characters a great deal. Happy endings don’t seem very real to me, and I wanted these books to be as real as possible despite being set in a fantastical universe. Life is messy and I want to reflect that in everything I write. I’m a sucker for tragedy, I guess.

M:  I liked the way you divided the book into three sections. All three sections tie together and show aging and growth of the characters. Was this hard to do or did you know you wanted to show time passing and age the characters to a point, tying them together and through time?

SJL:  I wanted to show how Sevy changed over time from the beginning. She is such a complex character, I myself needed the span of time and the range of her experiences in order to understand why she does what she does. Actually dividing the book into the three sections was my editor’s idea. She thought it would help readers recognize the leaps forward in time. It was a brilliant suggestion on her part.


Just as an aside, in book 5 of the series (the last one), I do plan on revealing more of what happened in the 8 year gap between the Stray and Sweetheart sections of THIEF. Jarro fans should look forward to it.

M:  I must say these sections are done very gracefully. I know we start with the view point from Jarro in part two then Revik in part three, but somewhere very gently with out me (as the reader) picking up on it, you shift back to Sevy’s view. Very nicely done as I didn’t even realize it when it happened.

SJL:  Thank you. I enjoyed switching between characters so that the reader can get to know each of them better. I use the same technique in SHADES OF WAR and MASQUERADE, and plan to do the same in books 4 and 5 as well.

M:  What is it like trying to work with Sevy and writing her life and journeys?

SJL:  She is frustrating beyond belief. Always contrary, always pushing boundaries, and behaving like a spoiled brat. And then she’ll suddenly flip flop, and be sweet and caring and gah!! She is a writer’s worst enemy, but I do love that about her.


I wanted a character with flaws. I wanted a female protagonist who didn’t follow the regular tropes of fantasy. And I have that, in spades, with Sevy. As Revik says in SHADES OF WAR, ‘If nothing else, [Sevy] always brings excitement.’

M:  Okay, a couple of fun questions for you…

M:  One question I ask in my interviews, if you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you go?

SJL:  I would love to go to Paris. Not to see the Eiffel Tower, but to roam through the catacombs. I’ve been obsessed with them for years.

M:  Favorite Season?

SJL:  Fall, definitely. Winter is too cold. Spring is soggy and smells like thawing dog poop, and summer is too humid. Fall is perfect. Not too hot, not too cold. No bugs. Fun holidays. Pretty colours. What more could you ask for?

M:  Favorite Color?

SJL:  As evidenced by the colour of Jarro’s eyes, royal blue.

M:  Favorite childhood fictional creature?

SJL:  Zampires. I was a big Anne Rice fan.

M:  And now as an adult, favorite fictional creature?

SJL:  Zombies. At least until someone ruins them for me by making them angst and sparkle.

M:  Favorite Word? (any word at all)

SJL:  Hmmm. That’s tough. I don’t know if you can post this or not, but I guess it would have to be “fuck” based on the amount of times I use it during the average day. It’s a catch-all and can be used no matter what my mood is.

M:  Thank you Sarah-Jane for being available to do this wonderful interview. I do wish you all the best in words and pages. Thank you!

SJL:  Thank you very much for the opportunity. I had a lot of fun. :)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

You can visit Sarah-Jane Lehoux on a few different places and learn more of her books

Official Website

Blog

Facebook
Twitter

Read more about Thief

On the Official Website, here where there is an excerpt, trailer, and links to reviews and other fun things.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And Sarah has been so kind as to offer a signed copy of Thief to one lucky follower!

Thank you Sarah!  I'm so glad to be able to host this giveaway as I so enjoyed this book.

Rules:

What do you need to do to enter?

+3 Comment!  Say Hello.  Any thoughts while reading the interview. We love comments!
+5 Share the Giveaway.  Tweet, blog, sidebar.  Just let others know we have this great book up here.  MUST leave link to verify.
+2 Follow My World...in words and pages with Google Friend Connect.  No need to follow to enter.  Leave me your screen name so I can verify.

Please leave a way to contact you!  In case you win I would like to tell you.

US and Canada only.

Giveaway will end:  June 30, 2011 Midnight EST

Book Review: Thief

Thief

By:  Sarah-Jane Lehoux

Publisher:  Mundania Press

Publish Date:  May 2010

Format:  Paperback 267pgs, 5"x8" Trade size

Genre:  Fantasy

Series:  1st Book in Sevy series

Recommendation:  Yes.  Do you like fantasy? Thieves? Go pick this one up! Such character connection here.

Book Synopsis:
In the crumbling city of Eloria, there is one indisputable fact: everyone has a price.  Protestations of morality and better judgment have little meaning when confronted with the chance to obtain the unobtainable.  The only question remaining is just how much a person is willing to sacrifice in order to win their heart's desire.

Sevy has always been a quick study in the wicked ways of Eloria.  She has no qualms about taking what she wants, and when the love of her life is mysteriously murdered, Sevy will stop at nothing to get him back.  Elvish black magic, necromancy and demonic pacts are of little consequence if it means she can once again have her beloved at her side.  But is she willing to murder her only friend to get the job done?

First Sentence:
She might as well have been invisible.

My Thoughts and Summary:
Sevy is a young girl and thief living in a city abandoned by most of the high class and nobility with nothing much left, as the factories have stopped too.  Sevy tries to take care of her one friend, Trena, just to find she has turned to prostitution as her handler promises her all the things she wants.  But, Sevy has her limits and wont join, not with this disgusting man.  Sevy has crossed paths a few times with the gorgeous oceanic blue-eyed man Jarro and Jarro ends up helping Sevy in a most dire way.  Sevy is looking for a friend and attaches herself with Jarro's unique group.  Yet there is one here who doesn't like having Sevy around, out of jealousy maybe, who is Irea.  She attempts to get to Sevy...one way or another...  And what happens when the group dissolves for matters greater than just going separate ways?

This is a fantasy read with thieves close and front. With that comes the battles they fight with others in a desolate city to survive, so there are fighting scenes and action. We also have different creatures present too; dwarfs, elves, mysterious dark elves, pixies, and more. The book doesn't waste time with unnecessary complete depictions of all the different creatures, but the creatures are present and you know of them. We do learn of the stories of the Dark Elves through the book as Sevy's one closest friend is one. But are the stories really true?

I thought this book was set up in an interesting way to get more story and view of time.  We have three sections which are different times of Sevy's life.  First how Sevy meets Jarro and becomes part of the group.  Second eight years later starting with Jarro's view, and leads into learning about Sevy's talents as a thief and the job they do together.  In which you learn more of the love here as well.  Then the third section, starting from a best friends view ~ Revik ~ and gets to the dangerous magic at hand.  I really liked this aspect as I got to see and feel the characters grow through out the book with out any loss in the connections with them.

I didn't realize I was so attached with Sevy and her love until the end.  I have to say I shed a few tears for them, and I don't do that.  I'm not one to cry when reading a book.  But this author did what I wanted her to do, yet desperately didn't want to see at the same time.  I loved it!  This is a way to take the chance with your characters and pushing them to be better along with making the readers love and feel for them.

Oh, I soooo enjoyed this read.  I even already ordered up the second book for me, Shades of War.  I'm really looking forward to getting more of this broken girl Sevy.

Are you curious about the books?  You can check out the authors site for her books, HERE at the Official Website for Sarah-Jane Lehoux.  Or go to the publishing site, Mundania Press and check out her books out as well, you can buy them here too. ;)


I purchased this book for my own reading enjoyment.


This book qualifies for the Speculative Fiction Reading Challenge, hosted by Floor to Ceiling Books.

Teaser Tuesday (77)

Teaser Tuesday

is a weekly event

Sponsored by MizB of Should be Reading

Here's how it works:

Grab the book you are currently reading (anything at all)

Open the book to any random page.

Share 2 teaser sentences from anywhere on the page

Please Make Sure They Are Not Spoilers!

(Don't Give Too Much Away)

Just enough to pique our interests

This Week:

He leaned his head back against the tree and watched the stars, tiny eyelets that let white slivers slip from the heavens hidden behind the velvet mantle of the sky.  It was a lovely night.  The kind one could imagine themselves remembering decades into the future when they were old and grey and the beauty of simplicity was all there was left to enjoy.

Thief

By Sarah-Jane Lehoux

99pg